Lightning to strike again in G1 Lion Cup

Champion galloper Lim's Lightning looks all set to defend his title for the second year when he contests the Grade 1 Lion City Cup over 1200m at Kranji Racecourse on Sunday.

With a record of six wins from seven starts last year, Lim's Lightning has become the reigning Horse Of The Year. After finishing sixth at his first start this year, when he clearly needed the run, the gelding returned to his best last time out when defeating a top-class field to claim the $1m Group 1 Kranji Mile – his fourth Group 1 victory following last year's Lion City Cup, Raffles Cup and Singapore Gold Cup.

Lim's Lightning is well prepared with three trials since his last start in mid-May and stands out as the horse to beat under this week's weight-for-age conditions.

Other chances include stablemate and this year's Singapore Derby winner Lim's Kosciuszko, who remains undefeated from six starts over this track and distance, and Tim Fitzsimmons' up-and-coming four-year-old Golden Monkey, who proved too good for his peers in the recent Three-Year-Old series. Trainer Donna Logan's thriving sprinter King Arthur also looks worthy of measuring up.

Elsewhere, promising fouryear-old Major King in on track for a second career win in the $75,000 Novice race over 1400m. Major King was heavily supported to score an easy win on debut in mid-June before finishing a solid third in the Grade 2 ThreeYear-Old

Classic over 1400m at his second start.

The gelding finished ahead of some horses whose ratings were higher than him, suggesting he has plenty of upside. In addition, the form has been franked with fourth place getter Gold Ten Sixty-One scoring a subsequent win in Class 4 last weekend.

Fitzsimmons (38 wins) holds a slender lead over Donna Logan who's hot on his heels with 37 wins on the trainers' ladder while Brazilian ace Manoel Nunes (58 wins), who is side-lined through injury, has a 30-win lead over CC Wong (28 wins) for champion jockey.

BEST BET Race 11

No 1 Lim's Lightning

VALUE BET Race 5 No 2 Fighter

JACKPOT R16

Leg 1: 1, 3, 4, 9

Leg 2: 1, 4

Leg 3: 1

Leg 4: 1, 3